All is Bright
by OldMondlerLover
Summary: Mondler post-series fic. It's been done a thousand times, but there's some imagery in this I can't get out of my head. And, well, 'tis the season for miracles. ;) Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

"Erica, Jack, let's go," Chandler bellowed from the bottom of the staircase, shrugging on his coat and scrolling through his iPhone.

Monica smirked at him from behind her coffee cup. She'd worked last night and normally she still would have been in bed while Chandler took care of the school morning routine, but it was a big day for the kids and she wanted to make sure it started off smoothly.

"Mom?" came Jack's desperate call. "Where are my antlers?!"

"I don't know, Jack," she said loudly, walking over to the bottom of the stairs now, too. "It's not my week to watch them."

"Ugh!" Jack said as they heard him stomp from the bathroom to his bedroom.

"First grade, honey," Chandler said, rolling his eyes at his wife and stuffing his phone in his coat pocket. "They're in first grade."

"Gotta teach 'em early."

"Mon," he said, pulling her to him and taking his phone out again to show her the time. "It's 7:05!"

"Don't tell me," she said, grinning up at him. "This 'cutting it close' stuff comes from you."

He smirked and gave her a quick kiss.

"Yeah, but this isn't the day for Daddy to be late," he mumbled. He was pitching a campaign to a new client this afternoon and he needed the whole morning for run-throughs with his team. He turned to the stairs again.

"Eri…" he started and then stopped as his daughter, calm, cool and collected, made her way down the stairs - with her brother's antlers. She handed them to Chandler.

"And how is our diva this morning?" Chandler asked, taking the antlers from her. "Ready for your solo?"

"Yes, Dad," she replied in a breathy, exaggerated tone. Chandler gave her a "drop-the-attitude" look.

"Where'd you find 'em?" he asked.

"They were with his Skylanders stuff," she shrugged, smiling at her Mom. Monica winked at her.

"Did you tell him?" Monica asked.

"Of course," Erica said, shooting an exasperated look over her shoulder at her Mom.

"Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer…" Jack sang at the top of his lungs as he descended the staircase - wearing his red nose.

"Boots, coats…now," Chandler said, picking up his briefcase as he started a little sing-song march he did with the twins. "Hustle, hustle, move it, move it…"

They sat down on the floor and started pulling on their boots as Monica handed their backpacks to Chandler.

"What time will you be at school?" Erica asked.

"Three o'clock," Monica said, smiling. "Dress rehearsal - very exciting…"

"You have the cookies?" Jack asked, a panicked look on his face.

"Yes," she said dramatically, shooting him a wide-eyed look of bemusement.

"Did you make them with the Christmas M&M's?" Erica asked, smoothing back the light brown hair that had fallen over her headband.

"Of course she did!" Jack said, pulling on his hat over his short, matching light brown hair then putting on his gloves. "You can't have Christmas cookies without red and green - duh."

"Enough," Monica said, hoping to stave off World War III. "Yes, the cookies are made with the right M&M's."

Erica stood up and folded her arms, glaring at Jack as he gave her his "told-you-so" look.

"Will Grandma and Grandpa be there?" Jack asked, as Erica tapped her foot impatiently.

"They'll be at the show tonight," Monica answered, zipping up Jack's coat since he'd forgotten to zip up before he put on his mittens. "We're going to have dinner at their house before the show and then they'll come with us."

"Yay!" Erica and Jack said at the same time.

"Bus is leaving - let's get you to school first, shall we?" Chandler said, holding the door to the garage open with his foot as the twins kissed their Mom goodbye. Then they raced to his Land Rover.

"See you at lunch?" she asked, kissing his cheek.

"Yeah," he said. "I should be able to get away for a half hour or so. What time is your appointment?"

"10:30," she answered. "I can't imagine it'll go later than 11:30, unless they are running late, which.."

"God help 'em if they are," he smirked. She nudged his arm.

"In any case, it's only six blocks away…"

He nodded.

"Just text me when you leave and I'll meet you."

"Sounds good. Hey," she said, grabbing him before he flew out the door, arms full of backpacks and laptop cases, "good luck today."

He smiled and let the door close behind him as he took a moment to kiss his wife properly.

"Thanks, babe," he said, giving her his lopsided grin. "I love you."

"Love you, too," she said. She moved to place another kiss on his lips as the Land Rover horn blared and Erica yelled "Dad!"

"Annnd…the pack beckons the mule," Chandler said, giving her another quick kiss. "See ya later."

Monica giggled a little and slapped his behind as he left.

"Bye, love you," she said, waving to the twins.

"Jack, backseat," Chandler said as he opened up the back of the car to put in the various bags. "Buckle in…"

She smiled and waved again as he backed the SUV out of the garage.

Monica closed the door, still smiling, then she looked over at the kitchen table.

And there sat Jack's antlers.

She sighed, shook her head and picked them up, moving them over to her purse to make sure she'd take them to dress rehearsal.

She grinned to herself and walked up the stairs to take a shower.

###

"Monica Bing?"

Monica looked up from the magazine she'd just opened and smiled at the nurse. She glanced at her phone before putting it in her purse. It was 10:25. They were early.

She grinned - she was going to like this practice.

Doctor Connelly had retired several months after her last annual trip to the OBGYN. Rachel had always liked her doctor and referred Monica to her. Dr. Long wasn't taking new patients, but her colleague, a Dr. Cleves, was accepting new patients. She wasn't an OB, but Monica only needed the GYN part anyway, so she decided to come see her for her yearly checkup.

"Hi, I'm Tracey, Dr. Cleves nurse, would you take a seat please."

Monica complied and they went through all the routine parts of going to a new doctor - a hundred questions, blood pressure check, peeing in a cup - all the usual stuff. Tracey, who looked to be just a little younger than Monica, led her to an exam room and continued asking questions.

"Current method of birth control?" Tracey asked.

"Six-year-old twins?" Monica said with a laugh. Tracey smiled.

"I hear you," she said, still waiting for her to tell her the real answer.

"We don't have a current method," Monica said, unabashedly. "I, um, we can't conceive naturally."

"Oh," Tracey said, a little embarrassed, writing in her chart. "I'm sorry Mrs. Bing, Dr. Connelly's office hasn't sent your records to us yet and I…"

"Oh, it's OK," Monica said, and she meant it. They'd moved past that pain a long time ago and she couldn't be happier with her life and family. A small ache was always there, somewhere far in the background of their lives, but it wasn't a prominent part of her and Chandler's world anymore.

She smiled at Tracey.

"First day of your last period?"

Monica had been trying to think of that since before she got there, knowing it would be one of the questions asked. Her periods had been somewhat irregular for a year and she honestly couldn't remember. She told Tracey as much.

"That's OK," the nurse replied. "As woman age all of that changes anyway - can be anywhere from 21-36 days. You'll be…40 on your next birthday?"

Monica cringed, "yeah."

Tracey smiled again, again a little embarrassed.

"Beats the alternative, I guess," she said, closing her folder. "Dr. Cleves will be in momentarily. You can change into the gown on the table."

"Thank you," Monica said, nodding.

Monica had barely finished tying the gown when Dr. Cleves knocked on the door and asked to come in.

"Hi, Monica, I'm Dr. Cleves," she said, extending her hand. Monica shook it and the women smiled at each other.

Monica climbed onto the table, but Dr. Cleves took a seat across from her before starting her exam. She flipped through her chart.

"It says here that you can't remember the first day of your last period, is that correct?"

"Yeah," Monica said, furrowing her brow. "I don't know why but I can't. I guess I really haven't kept track for a while now."

She shrugged.

Dr. Cleves nodded and looked through the papers again before she stood up and folded her arms across her chest, holding the chart.

She smiled softly at Monica.

"Well, I'm afraid I'm not going to be able to serve as your doctor," she said.

"Why not?" Monica asked, completely confused.

Dr. Cleves's smile widened.

"Because, Mrs. Bing, you're pregnant."

_**NOTE: Full-ish disclosure - the first half of this chapter is my life, I swear. Not completely, of course, but pretty darn close! Anyway, a little Mondler pregnancy fluff never hurt anyone, right? I'll warn you, though, this isn't going to be some big epic story, just a few moments in their lives - a little gift , you might say. ;) Thanks in advance for your reviews :)**_


	2. Chapter 2

_You're pregnant._

The words hung in the space between the doctor and Monica for a couple moments before Monica actually heard them.

She stared wide-eyed at Dr. Cleves. She was wrong, she wasn't going to like this practice at all.

"Excuse me?" she said when she could finally find her voice.

"You're going to have a baby, Monica," Dr. Cleves said, again, a look of concern now crossing her face.

"That's impossible," Monica said, springing to her feet and getting a little angry with her. "You have to have the wrong chart. I, we…we can't…"

"I…" Dr. Cleves started, looking into the paperwork again. "No, not wrong. Your urine sample was positive for pregnancy."

"Then you must have someone else's sample," Monica shot back at her.

Dr. Cleves walked over to the door and opened it, asking for Tracey to come in.

Monica leaned back against the table, her head beginning to spin.

"Can we have Mrs. Bing retake the urine sample please," she asked the nurse. "And we need to draw some blood."

Tracey nodded and walked back out the door.

"Monica, obviously, this is a…surprise…"

"Surprise?" Monica mocked her, her eyes filling with tears. "I can't…we _can't_. My…my husband has low motility and I have an…an inhospitable…environment. We've haven't used birth control in eight years! This is…it's…I'm sorry, it's just impossible…"

"OK, OK," Dr. Cleves said, patting Monica's arm. "We'll test again, OK? The blood test will take longer but we'll know the results of the new urine test right away."

"Yeah," Monica said, sitting shakily back up on the table. "Yeah, OK."

She started to tremble and tried to clear her head. It had to be some colossal mistake. She'd had no symptoms. She was fatigued, sure, but she had a demanding full-time job, was a PTA mom to twins, shuttled the kids to theater, gymnastics, hockey - hell, every woman she knew was tired all the time. She didn't remember being nauseated, she couldn't think of anything…

Or could she? There were a few days she didn't want Chandler near her when her breasts were very sore. They always ached at a certain time of the month, but that one time had been intense. But, it was gone in a few days and she forgot about it.

Then there was the sex, which was always good with her husband, but lately had been out-of-this-world amazing...

"I…" she looked at the doctor, calmer now, but still very reluctant to let her mind or her heart open doors she'd dead-bolted shut long ago.

The nurse came in and took her blood then gave her another cup. Monica went back to the bathroom, praying she had enough left to do the test.

Then she went back into the exam room and waited - alone.

She pulled her phone out of her purse with shaking hands, ready to call Chandler. But, to say what? No, she needed to be sure of…something…before she called him.

She clenched and unclenched her fists, she bit her nails. She stared at the clock and paced intermittently. She didn't feel like she'd taken one breath the entire time she waited.

Monica gasped as Dr. Cleves came back into the exam room, Tracey following behind. Both had smiles on their faces.

She sat heavily on the chair opposite the exam table.

"Really?" she whispered, tears filling her eyes once again, arms finally falling in a cradling position across her stomach.

"Really," Dr. Cleves said, "congratulations."

"How…how?" Monica said through her tears, still completely in shock. "After all this time…"

Dr. Cleves rolled over the stool from the other end of the room and took Monica's hand.

"Our bodies…change as we get older," she said softly. "It could be a result of that or…it really could be a miracle. I've seen enough of those to believe that some things truly defy explanation…"

Monica just stared at her, beginning to cry.

"I just, I can't believe it," she half-sobbed, half-laughed. "I have to tell…oh my God. He'll be…he'll be…"

And she cried harder, picturing Chandler's face. He would be so, so happy.

"I'm going to have Tracey see if we can set up an ultrasound for you this afternoon," Dr. Cleves said, handing her a tissue, "and I will talk to Dr. Long about taking you on as an OB patient."

She stood and Monica stood with her.

"Now, I think you have some people you need to talk to," Dr. Cleves said. "It was nice to meet you Monica."

"It was nice meeting you, too," Monica said, laughing now and wiping her eyes. "You have no idea!"

The doctor smiled and left the room while Monica started to get dressed, feeling like she was floating.

She was pregnant. Pregnant!

She was going to have a baby…their own little baby. One with her eyes and Chandler's smile…oh my…

She sat again, only half dressed, and looked down at her flat stomach.

"Hi there, Little One," she said in barely a whisper, voice full of awe and thick with tears, hand covering her belly. "We've been waiting for you."

###

_Meet me at the bench outside your building in 20 minutes?_

Chandler frowned at Monica's text and looked at the time. It was 10:55. It was too early for lunch and he had an office full of people.

_Done already? _He texted back.

_Yes_

"OK," he said to his team, sending an "OK" reply on his phone and putting it on his desk. "Let's wrap this up. I've got another…meeting to get to in 20 minutes."

Chandler had worked his way up to senior copywriter and was now in charge of five other employees. They were one of the top three writing teams in the agency. The pressure could be pretty intense, but he loved it. He loved having a job he was passionate about, and it rounded out his life completely.

Sometimes when he had a rare spare second or two he would sit on the bench at Jack's hockey practice or on a little stool in the rec center to watch Erica try gymnastics, and he couldn't believe this was his life; yet it was the life he'd always wanted, never knowing until he was living it just how much.

Great job, incredible kids - sensational wife. Drop-dead gorgeous, sensational wife who was still as madly in love with him as he was with her. He tried really hard to never forget that he had it all - that he was really living the dream - despite that tiny part of the old Chandler that was sure one day it would all go away.

And so he started to worry as he grabbed his long winter coat and walked out of his office almost 20 minutes later. Monica had a short appointment and was being very vague. A dozen little fears trickled through his mind as he gave a short wave to the building security guard in the lobby and pushed open the door.

###

Monica caught sight of him as he turned the corner from his building and made his way onto the crowded sidewalk toward the bench. He always stood out in a crowd, she thought, and not just because she loved him. She'd always thought he could move with effortless grace when he didn't think anyone was watching, and even from far away she could see his blue eyes scanning through the throngs of people.

His eyes, she decided at that moment. She wanted this baby to have his eyes.

She folded and unfolded her gloved hands as she sat down and waited for him. For years she'd played out in her head how she wanted this moment to happen, but she hadn't thought of _this moment_ for so long she almost didn't know what to say.

He gently smiled at her as he came closer, and it amazed her that after being in love with this man for more than 12 years her heart could still skip a beat when that slow smile broke across his face. She smiled back and Chandler relaxed a little. The smile didn't look forced. Actually, she looked…radiant.

"Hey, babe," he said, kissing her cheek and sitting down next to her when she didn't get up from the bench. There was worry in his face. "Did…your... appointment go OK?"

"Yes."

"OK," he said, taking her hand and grinning a little. "I'm gonna need more than one-word answers, Mon. What's going on?"

He watched as her eyes filled with tears - anxiety flooding back into his heart.

"Monica…" he took both her hands, searching her face. "What's wrong?"

She wanted to freeze time as she looked into his concerned eyes, wanting desperately to remember this moment for the rest of her life. She took a deep breath.

"Chandler," she started, her voice catching in her throat. She squeezed his hands.

"You…" she breathed, studying his face through her tears, "you are going to be a Daddy again."

Her radiant smile returned.

"I'm pregnant."

She held her breath as she watched the myriad of emotions crossing his face. His lips moved fast, in that way they did when he wasn't sure what to say but was trying desperately to figure it out. She grinned, looking adoringly at him, then her breath caught as she watched his bottom lip quiver.

"Are…are you…serious?" he asked, his voice low and shaking, his eyes bright.

She nodded vigorously, tears now spilling from her eyes.

"H…how? When?" he whispered, his heart pounding in his ears, feeling like he couldn't breathe. "W…What?!"

"I know!" she said, now laughing and crying all at once. "I know! I didn't believe it either."

"What?" he said again, confusion remaining on his face. "Are you sure…I mean…sure, sure?!"

"Yes," she laughed, "we're going to have a baby!"

"Oh my God!" he jumped up, smiling finally and pulling her with him. "Oh my God! And you're sure…they're sure, everybody's sure?!"

"Everybody's sure," she nodded, her face starting to hurt from the never-ending smile. "I made them test me twice!"

"Oh, I bet you did!" he said, laughing with her now with tears in his eyes. Then he pulled her to him tight. "Oh, baby, oh, baby…we're gonna have a baby!"

She squeezed him hard and let out a little hiccup as she laughed and cried against him, a few passersby smiling at the euphoric couple.

"After…all these years…I never…" he whispered into her hair as his breath caught.

She looked up at him, not knowing what to say, but knowing the unabashed joy he was looking at her with now would remain in her heart forever.

"I know," she mouthed then leaned up to kiss him. He whimpered just a little as he kissed her back, then leaned his forehead to hers, taking her hands and holding them against his chest.

"How…" he closed his eyes and briefly shook his head against hers, not believing he was actually going to be able to ask this question. "How far along are you?"

"I don't know yet," she said, pulling back a little, "I…we have an ultrasound…"

"God, I can't believe this…" he interrupted, voice shaking again.

"I know…I know," she whispered, just as much in awe. She cupped his face, shaking her head as a new batch of tears sprang to her eyes. "At 1:10…I have to be at school at 3…"

They both looked at each other then, thinking the exact same thing.

"How excited do you think they'll be?" Monica grinned.

"Oh, honey, they'll be insane," Chandler chuckled. "Christmas, Hanukkah _and_ a new brother or sister? Could there _be_ any more excitement?"

She giggled, then furrowed her brow and frowned a little.

"What about your pitch this afternoon?"

Chandler shook his head.

"Wild horses, Mon," he said, grinning at her as he smoothed down her hair and ran his hands along the sides of her face. "Wild horses couldn't keep me away from that ultrasound. I'll talk to Steve."

"Will you tell him?"

"I want to," he said, then added as he looked at the pensive expression on her face. "Maybe not?"

"Maybe not," she said, concern clouding her features. "Maybe not until we know how far along I am and that everything…that everything's OK. Maybe we shouldn't say anything to anyone…"

He ran his hands along her arms and looked into her worried eyes.

He smiled as she put her arms around his neck, relaxing into his embrace.

"Everything is going to be OK," he said softly, confidently. "If one of my lazy guys actually decided to set up camp, he ain't movin'."

She giggled again, her eyes never leaving his.

He inched his hands from the place they rested on her hips closer to the middle of her stomach and gripped his long fingers a little tighter around her coat.

"This kiddo is the luckiest baby in the world to have you for a Mommy."

"And you for a Daddy," she whispered, brushing her nose against his, smiling.

"And the Dynamic Duo as their big sibs," he grinned. "What a ride…"

She closed her eyes and breathed him in, standing on her tip toes and leaning her cheek against his as she whispered in his ear.

"I can't wait…"

_**NOTE: Thanks so much for your reviews! :)**_


	3. Chapter 3

Monica laid back on the table as they waited for the ultrasound tech to come into the examination room. She was covered with a sheet from the waist down since she'd only had to remove her pants this time around.

She tried to take deep breaths to calm her nerves. She didn't know she was pregnant. Was that a bad sign? Did that mean something was wrong with the baby?

Chandler gripped her hand a little tighter, saying silently what he'd repeated as a mantra for the last couple hours. Everything was going to be OK. It had to be OK. The universe just couldn't be cruel enough to have them go through this moment just to have it taken away from them. To have them go through that kind of pain…again. It just couldn't.

"Mr. and Mrs. Bing?"

"Yes," Monica croaked out as she tried to sit up a little bit more.

"I'm Tamara," said the tech. "Dr. Long is on her way from the hospital. She had a delivery but she'll be here soon. We're going to get some pictures of your baby."

She patted Monica on the shoulder and Monica, with a nervous smile on her face, put one arm behind her head and laid back again.

"OK," Tamara said, moving the ultrasound equipment closer to her and next to Monica, opposite Chandler. "We'll start with a traditional ultrasound, but since we don't really know how far along you are we may have to do an internal."

"That sounds…gross," Chandler grimaced. Monica rolled her eyes at him.

"Gel is cold," Tamara said, putting a glob on Monica's belly as she turned on the monitor. She placed the wand on Monica's abdomen and pushed down. Monica held her breath.

A bunch of grey and black showed up on the screen as Tamara glided along, pushing and moving around. Chandler felt his forehead start to sweat and he clasped Monica's damp hand tighter in his own. He glanced at the tech, who was wearing a trained non-expression on her face. He looked at Monica, who stared at the screen with worried tears in her eyes.

"There we go," Tamara said as she calmly pushed a couple buttons on the machine. "This little one was hiding back there."

"Oh…" Monica shuddered quietly, her eyes fixed on the image before her, swiftly pulling her free hand from over her head and onto Chandler's hand holding hers. There was a head, there were a couple legs, arm buds…there was their little baby floating around in a tiny black bubble inside of her. And he or she was so small, and yet there was no mistaking it - that little baby was right there.

She gripped Chandler's hand tighter and stole a glance at him. He was transfixed, mouth slightly open, not moving an inch, staring at the screen. Suddenly the little person kicked and the whole bubble bounced.

"Ha!" Chandler burst out, eyes never leaving the screen. "Look at that…"

Tears started to stream down Monica's face.

"Oh God," she whispered, "oh God…"

Chandler finally turned and looked at his wife, tears shining in his eyes.

"It's real, Mon," he said, his voice shaking, smiling at her. "There's a real little person in there!"

"I know," she let out a watery giggle, beaming through her tears.

They watched as Tamara quickly measured the baby's length and head circumference with a series of lines and circles on the screen.

"I'm gonna say…." she said, clicking a few more buttons, "you're baby…he or she is measuring at nine weeks, three days."

She turned one more knob and a strong, steady and rapid "tha-thump, tha-thump" filled the room.

"Strong heartbeat," she nodded, looking at Monica and Chandler, "151 beats a minute."

"That's good?" Monica asked, anxiously.

"That's perfect," Tamara smiled at her, handing Monica some paper towels and putting the wand away. "I'll grab your pictures. Dr. Long should be here shortly."

She left the last ultrasound shot of Little Bing up on the monitor and left the room.

For a moment neither of them moved, both staring at the image of their baby. Then Monica sat up a little and started to wipe the gel off.

"Here," Chandler whispered, "let me."

Monica handed him the paper towels with a small smile. She closed her eyes and laid back, emotionally overwhelmed. Tears trickled down the sides of her face as Chandler gently, slowly wiped off her stomach; then she felt a couple drops of moisture land on her.

She looked up at her husband, who was still cleaning her off as he quietly cried, unable to stop the tears from falling fast from his red face as he tried hard to pull himself together.

"Oh, sweetheart," she whispered as her own tears came faster. She took a ragged breath and reached up for him, pulling him to her. He leaned over, still clutching the paper towels in his hand, and buried his head in the crook of her neck, putting his arms around her and holding her close.

She threw her head back, then rested her chin on top of his shoulder, and smiled through her tears. Besides the twins birth she was sure she hadn't felt so much joy in her life. The night they got engaged and the day they were married were close, but this was something else entirely. This was the most beautiful of all surprises. Ever.

Chandler sniffed and sighed deeply a couple times. She just held him tighter.

"I love you," she breathed, swallowing heavily. "I love you so much."

"Ahh…" he grunted, sniffing again. He pulled back to look at her. Her eyes were as red as he was sure his were, and her smile was unlike anything he'd ever seen on her face. He really didn't know in his whole life if he'd ever loved her as much as he did right in that moment. All the emotion coursing through him was impossible to describe.

"You are a miracle," he whispered, wiping her tears with two fingers as she wiped his. "It's…all…everything…it's just a miracle…"

"You are," she whispered back, running her hands gently over his cheeks again and again as she looked into his eyes. He chuckled a little, then went to wipe his eyes with the paper towels, until he remembered they were filled with ultrasound gel.

He made a mildly disgusted face and threw the towels in the waste basket as Monica giggled, wiping her own eyes now with her fingertips, both their tears slowing down.

"Look at that little bunny…" Monica said, shaking her head in disbelief. She and Chandler looked back at the screen as Tamara knocked on the door and came in with the ultrasound pictures they could take home. She was followed by Dr. Long.

"Monica and Chandler," the doctor said, smiling and shaking both their hands. "This has been quite a day, huh?"

"You might say that," Chandler said, his voice thick, as Monica let out a little laugh, still wiping her eyes.

Tamara handed Chandler the ultrasound pictures.

"Congratulations," she smiled, then turned and walked out of the room.

Dr. Long took a seat on the rolling stool, flipping through the chart in her hand.

"We made sure we received your records from Dr. Connelly's office this morning after your appointment," she said, looking at Monica. "I can see now why this news was such a big shock."

Monica nodded.

"It was the very last thing I would have expected," she said, honestly. "I mean, I didn't have morning sickness or really feel different, ya know, all the stuff that may have been…that people look for…"

Dr. Long nodded.

"Maybe I should have kept better track of my cycle," Monica said, "but…"

"But you didn't suspect you had a reason to," Dr. Long nodded again.

"No," Monica said, as Chandler took her hand and helped her sit up a little more. "I really didn't."

"That's common for a woman…your age," Dr. Long acknowledged, with a small smile, "and it's not _uncommon_ to have no symptoms or minimal symptoms when you _are_ pregnant. Every woman is different. It is more common for most women to have temporary morning sickness, and some are sick for the duration of their pregnancies. And some, like you, not at all. You're one of the lucky ones."

"Oh, believe me," Monica said, her eyes filling with tears again as she looked at Chandler. "I know that!"

Chandler smiled softly at her and raised her hand in his, giving it a quick kiss. Dr. Long smiled at them then stood and walked over to Monica, gently pressing her stomach to quickly examine the growth of her uterus. She smiled and pulled Monica's shirt down for her.

"Your blood tests and ultrasound images all came back normal," she continued. "I will still consider your pregnancy 'high risk' Monica, because you will be 40 when the baby is born. You'll have some extra appointments and we'll keep a good eye on you, but you are healthy woman and everything looks really good."

Both of them visibly relaxed at Dr. Long's words.

"What about all the…trouble we've had…conceiving?" Chandler asked.

Dr. Long shook her head.

"Well, you're past that now," she said, smiling at him. "It has no bearing on the pregnancy. Your baby has been growing on a healthy trajectory for more than nine weeks. The chance of a miscarriage in any pregnancy goes down exponentially as each week passes and it won't be long before you're in your second trimester. I never make promises I can't keep, but as I said, everything looks good."

Monica and Chandler smiled at each other.

"Now," Dr. Long said, pulling out a small, laminated conception wheel from her lab coat, "let's see when you're due."

Monica could barely contain her excitement as Dr. Long moved the wheel around. Chandler was grinning from ear to ear, their tears long gone for the moment.

"You're measuring at nine weeks, three days, so that puts your conception date at the first week of October…"

"The first week of October?!" Chandler said, flabbergasted, looking at Monica. "You've been pregnant since October?!"

"Apparently so," she said, in about the same amount of shock. "I don't even remember what we were doing the first week of October!"

"Obviously we were doing somethin'," he said, wiggling his eyebrows at her.

"Yeah, but we do that all the time," she said with a wave of her hand, grinning at the mock-look of disappointment on his face. She pulled him to her and kissed him quickly on the lips.

Dr. Long chuckled.

"Today is Dec. 12, so that puts you at…around…June 30 of next year, as your due date," she said.

"Oh, that's not good for me," Chandler said, suddenly feeling very jovial. Monica shot him a classic Geller glare.

"But…yeah…I can make it work," he said, with a little grin. She smirked at him.

The doctor grinned and shook her head.

"You have a prescription for prenatal vitamins waiting at the exit window, along with some pamphlets on care during pregnancy and a complementary water bottle," Dr. Long said. "Take your vitamins, drink lots of water, steer clear of alcohol and drugs, obviously, and eat healthy. And get ready, it won't be too long before you'll be showing. Most first-time moms won't show until about the fourth month, but it won't be long now."

"She's not a first-time Mom," Chandler said quickly

"Pregnant mom," Dr. Long corrected herself. "Yes, I understand you have twins?"

"We sure do," Monica said, with pride. "Jack and Erica. They're six."

"Ah, that's great," the doctor said, smiling. "Just don't over-do, but you can continue with life as normal. You're really in good shape, Monica."

Dr. Long stood then and shook their hands again.

"I look forward to getting to know you both better," she said, then added patting Monica's stomach. "And Baby Bing."

"Thank you so much," Monica smiled.

"Of course," she said. "They'll set up your next appointment before you leave, and you can call me any time you need to if you have any questions."

The doctor looked at Chandler and grinned.

"Word to the wise," she said, looking back and forth between them. "You don't have to think about this now, but since you've successfully conceived once there's a better chance it could happen again. That's not exactly scientific, but it has been my experience. Just keep that in mind."

Chandler blinked back in silent shock, then his lopsided grin came over his face.

"I think that's some dice we'll be willing to roll," he said.

The doctor smiled and closed the door.

He turned to Monica, who was smiling widely.

"Yeah?"

Chandler smirked and leaned over to kiss her forehead.

"It's always been a four, baby," he winked at her. "But let's get through this pregnancy first, OK?"

"You bet," she said with glee as she hopped down softly from the table as Chandler picked up her folded pants and handed them to her. He looked through the ultrasound pictures he was still holding in his hand as she got dressed.

She laced her arm through his when she was done, gazing at the black and white images.

"You ready?" she asked, her eyes sparkling as she smiled up at him.

"You better believe it," he grinned as he opened the door for her, cast one last glance at the picture of their baby frozen on the monitor, and followed his wife out into the hallway.

_**NOTE: Your reviews are wonderful, everyone, thank you. But I have to say, MeganLucy26, your review for the last chapter literally made me LOL - thanks! :) Pregnant Mondler is fun!... ;) **_


	4. Chapter 4

"Tell me again," Chandler said as he opened the driver's side minivan door for his wife in the parking garage, "the plan for tonight is…?"

"Show starts at 7," she said, setting her purse inside. "Twins and I are having dinner at Mom and Dad's first."

"And you're not gonna tell your parents?"

"Well," she said, briefly averting her eyes from his. "I'm not _planning_ to…"

"Uh huh," he said, tongue firmly in cheek, giving her his little grin. "I suppose I'll grab something to eat before I leave work."

"Something healthy, Daddy," she beamed at him, reaching up to peck his lips.

"Yes, ma'am," he grinned, kissing her back. For a moment they looked into each other's eyes, arms wrapped around one another, then Monica tried to stifle a giggle.

"What?" he asked, still grinning.

She shook her head briefly.

"Do you remember the day Ben was born?"

"Ben? Our nephew, Ben? The one who, every time he sees me says, 'so when are we gonna take the old Porsche for a spin, Uncle Chan?'" he said, cocking his head and speaking in his best teenage-boy voice. "That Ben?"

"Yes, that would be the one," she said, rolling her eyes. "And it would probably be good to run it once in a while."

"He _just_ got his temps, honey," Chandler said, shaking his head. "So, I'm thinking 'no.'"

"Um, he is my brother's son," Monica reminded him.

"Ah yes, but Rachel's teaching him how to drive, remember?"

A brief look of horror crossed Monica's face.

"Good point," she shuddered a little. "Anyway, do you remember what you…offered…the day he was born?"

He grinned, knowing full well what she was talking about.

"Refresh my memory."

She grinned back at him, knowing he knew, but she wanted to say it anyway.

"You said when we're 40, we should get together and have a baby."

"I _believe_ I said if neither of us was married…"

She gently smacked the back of his head as she pulled him a little closer. He smiled at her.

"My point is," she said softly, "you kept your promise. You got me all knocked up."

"Finally…" he whispered dramatically, pulling her in for a sweet kiss.

"I love you," he said softly after their kiss broke. He gently brushed the back of his hand over her stomach.

"And I love you…"

Monica's eyes filled with tears again. "We love you, too."

He smiled gently at her as she cleared her throat and stepped back, grinning, and running her hands through his hair one more time.

"I better get to school," she said, climbing into the van.

"Drive more like Ross than Rachel," he said, glancing at his watch. "You've got time. Be careful."

"I will," she said, turning on the ignition and closing the door. She felt the protective warmth of his words wash through her and she winked at him. "Don't worry about us. See you soon."

He watched her pull out of her spot in the garage, then turned to walk back to his office, a smile planted firmly on his face.

###

Chandler scrolled through his iPhone as he walked back to work, grinning when he saw an e-mail from Steve telling him to take his time. When Steve told their potential new clients that Chandler had a family medical emergency they'd offered to reschedule.

"You already got 'em," Steve had added to the end of his e-mail.

Chandler chuckled a little at that as he put his phone back in his pocket and let out a deep breath. "Happy" wasn't a word that did justice to what he was feeling. "Happy" wasn't enough. "Joyous" wasn't enough. "Euphoric" even seemed lame.

Monica was pregnant. She was pregnant with his baby, something he'd wanted to happen almost from the moment he proposed to her more than 10 years ago.

He pulled the ultrasound picture out of his coat pocket and stepped over near the edge of the sidewalk, trying to focus on the little baby in the black and white image as his eyes started to water. He wanted to shout the news from the nearest skyscraper. He wanted to put a full-page ad in the _New York Times_.

He wanted the whole world to know that by some stroke of luck, for some unexplained reason, they were finally going to have a baby.

The wind suddenly kicked up, flapping the little ultrasound image in the breeze, and Chandler put the picture safely back in his breast pocket. He pulled his coat a little tighter around his neck.

As he turned to walk back in the direction of his building a symphonic chorus of singing voices seemed to rise out of nowhere and hit him full in the face.

Chandler looked up then and found himself at the bottom of the steps that led to the front doors of St. Patrick's Cathedral.

He tilted his head back, taking in the massive, gothic structure, looking somewhat out of place flanked by the tall, glass office buildings around it. He'd passed by it a thousand times, never paying it much notice. It was a church, it was a tourist attraction, it was iconic, but it was New York - everything was "iconic" in one way or another. But today he stopped and watched as the clouds above floated behind the imposing steeples cast against a mostly gray winter sky.

Two people were climbing the steps next to him and when they pulled open the thick, heavy doors the music flowed out onto the sidewalk once again.

And Chandler didn't know why, but he turned and followed the couple, opening the doors himself and walking right into the church.

###

_Silent Night_

_Holy Night_

_All is Calm_

_All is Bright_

_Round yon Virgin_

_Mother and Child…_

Chandler took a seat in a far back pew. A couple dozen tourists mingled by the alter at the front of the church, taking pictures and talking softly. The music was coming from a large choir obviously practicing for a Christmas performance.

The soaring interior of marble, stained-glass windows and Romanesque columns was decorated for the season, with soft white lights and candles, and burgundy and forest green ribbons tastefully placed here and there throughout the church.

It looked perfect, but Chandler smiled, thinking of what Monica would probably do to "improve it" if she was in charge of getting a sanctuary ready for the holidays.

He folded his hands and tucked them under his chin, putting his elbows on his knees - looking at nothing in particular as the choir continued with its traditional rendition of "Silent Night."

And his mind started to wander back…

_"It's not fair! I don't even have one, how come they get two?"_

_"You'll get one."_

_"Oh yeah? When?"_

He grinned. It was true that he was just trying to make her feel better back then, but it was the first time he had ever thought of having a baby - ever - and it had been with Monica.

_"I know about the baby."_

_"What baby?"_

_"Our baby."_

_"We have a baby?!"_

Oh how he'd freaked out when he heard Phoebe and Rachel in the hall the day of their wedding; then he'd found the onesie at the hotel gift shop and he wasn't freaked out anymore. Chandler frowned, remembering how happy it actually had made him to tell Ross the news that Monica was pregnant. He remembered how giddy it made him feel when he thought, for all of about 20 minutes that day, that they were going to have a baby.

_"It means we can keep trying, but there's a good chance this may never happen for us."_

_"Oh my God…"_

Chandler squeezed his eyes shut. It still hurt. The look on her face at that moment had shattered his heart into a million pieces, and he would never, ever forget it, as much as he wanted to. Her lifelong dream was lost in one instant. They were completely, utterly devastated. He couldn't fix it, and he'd been so mad because he couldn't fix it. He couldn't make it better. He'd comforted her as best he could, but she'd eventually had to talk him down. He'd been so angry - at everyone and everything.

He was certainly convinced there wasn't a God. Chandler vividly recalled thinking that if there was a higher power it would never have let his good-hearted, loving wife go through that kind of pain. But once Monica's energy turned to finding another way they could become parents, so did his, and he was determined to make it happen.

Chandler sat back in the pew, putting his hands on his knees and let out a deep breath. His eyes began to water as the choir ended "Silent Night" and soft applause came from the small cluster of people at the front of the church. The organist then started to play the opening notes of "O Holy Night."

_"You still want that baby?"_

_"God Bless You, Chandler Bing!"_

He thought of Erica. He'd be forever grateful to the girl from Ohio who, despite all the miscommunication, he'd been able to convince to give them the child she was carrying. The children, as it turned out. He and Monica sent her a card with an update every Christmas, and she'd called a couple times when the twins were infants, but they hadn't heard from her in four years. She'd made her decision, it seemed, and moved on. It made them both breathe a little easier with each passing year.

_"Now we have one of each!"_

He gently swiped at the tears that had formed under his eyes as he pictured his babies - Erica and Jack. He'd never known it was possible to fall completely, unconditionally in love with two little people who didn't even know how to smile yet, but he had. They were the absolute joys of his life and, in ways he didn't entirely comprehend, they'd completed his transformation to manhood which Monica had started. He was their Dad and, unlike his Dad, he was not going to miss a thing. And he hadn't - those first smiles, the first time Jack called him "Dada", the first steps Erica took, the toddler temper tantrums, endless ear aches and going over the alphabet until he was dreaming of letters in his sleep.

Chandler took a deep breath and looked heavenward as he thought of their first day of kindergarten, when he and Monica had followed their confident 5-year-olds into their classrooms. They'd all rallied, he remembered, tears in their eyes, but not one of the four of them had let them fall as they waved goodbye. Then he and Monica had walked back to his Land Rover, climbed inside, held hands and cried like babies in the school parking lot for a good 10 minutes.

He sighed heavily and shook his head at the memory, tears streaming down his face now - and with bright, blurry eyes he looked up at the colors shining like a kaleidoscope throughout the space around him.

_"You are going to be a Daddy again. I'm pregnant."_

_"We're going to have a baby!"_

He gasped sharply and put his fist to his lips as the music from the choir grew to its crescendo and seemed to fill every little space in his pounding heart.

_A thrill of Hope, the weary world rejoices_

_For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn_

_Fall on your knees,_

_Oh hear, the angel voices…_

And so he did. Chandler knelt down heavily on one knee, folded his hands, leaned against the pew in front of him, and simply whispered "thank you."

Then from somewhere, whether real or imaginary, over the voices of the choir and the tourists, he could swear he heard two words very clearly…

"You're welcome."

_**NOTE: This image - of Chandler in a church in his winter coat on his knees praying over…something - has been in my head for such a long time. And I know he wasn't a religious character in any sense, but if anything could bring a man to his knees, I would think the news he'd received that day would. And, to be honest, this moment carries personal significance for me and I just wanted to write it. Reviews are wonderful, thank you…**_


	5. Chapter 5

"I don't know what do to with this thing," Jack said, pressing several different buttons on the iPad touch-screen. "Why can't we just use the camcorder?"

"Because they don't make tapes in that size anymore, Dad," Monica said, with a grin. "Here, let me see it."

Jack handed the iPad to his daughter and looked around the gym for his son-in-law, anxious to see him.

Monica and Judy huddled over the iPad while they sat on their folding chairs two rows back from the stage. Monica showed Judy how to record the video. She wanted to record Jack and Erica's performances for Nora and Charles.

"There's my beautiful daughter," Judy said, shooting a video of Monica to practice. "Isn't she glowing?"

"Oh, Mom," Monica smiled. "Now, touch the red button. I don't want to use up the memory."

Judy complied then leaned over to give her daughter a hug. The women smiled at each other with tears in their eyes. Becoming a grandmother had softened Judy, especially when it came to Monica and Chandler's kids. She loved Ross's children just as much, but she knew what a struggle it was for her daughter to have a family, and watching Monica as a mother actually gave her little to criticize. She was very proud of her - and overjoyed with the news Monica contained for only about 5 minutes when they arrived at the Gellers for dinner. The twins didn't hear, they were washing up for dinner, but Jack and Judy were over the moon that the Bings were pregnant.

Now they all sat with other parents and grandparents, gathered in the school gymnasium/theater to see the kindergarten through second grade musical "Holiday Time." There were songs about Hanukkah, Kwanza and Christmas. Erica's solo introduced Christmas and Jack's Rudolph closed out the show, which was set to start in about ten minutes.

"There he is," Jack said, getting up from his seat and waving to Chandler as he made his way over to him at the back of the gym. Chandler smiled and quickly waved to Jack as he shrugged off his coat.

"Hi there!" Jack said giving a surprised Chandler a big bear hug. He pulled back and put both hands on his son-in-law's shoulders with such a proud look on his face Chandler had to chuckle.

"I take it Monica told you," he said, with a smile.

"She sure did," he grinned, slapping Chandler on the back. "Way to go, son! She's so happy."

Chandler smiled and nodded.

"Me, too," he said, slapping Jack's back as his father-in-law pulled him in for another half-hug and they walked over to where Judy and Monica were seated.

Judy, sitting on the other side of Monica, stretched out her hand to Chandler. He took it and she squeezed his fingers. There were tears in Judy's eyes as she made contact with his.

"Congratulations, Chandler," she said, her voice thick with emotion. He leaned past Monica and kissed Judy on the cheek.

"Thanks, Grandma," he whispered and smiled at her, giving her hand a squeeze.

He settled in next to Monica as Judy showed Jack how to use the iPad.

"Hey, babe," he said, giving Monica kiss as she beamed at him. "I see our little secret is out."

"Umph," she said, with a little accusatory grin, putting a finger on his chin. "I already received texts from your Dad _and_ Steve congratulating us. Oh, and your mother wants to Skype later…"

His face turned a little pink.

"Well…"

"It's OK," she said, giggling, giving his cheek a quick kiss. "I wanna shout it from the rooftops, too."

He smiled.

"How are they doing?" he nodded toward the closed curtain on the stage.

"Oh, they're fine," she said, a little disappointed. "I was going to stay backstage but 'the diva' said they were just fine and to watch from out here. If the teachers can reign in Rudolph they'll be doing good…"

Chandler chuckled at that.

"Your girl nailed her solo at the dress rehearsal," she said, with a smile.

"Of course she did," he said, with pride in his voice. "And Rudolph?"

"Oh my God, he is such a ham," Monica giggled again. "He's just so excited. Reminds me of Joey when he sees a good sandwich."

Chandler burst out laughing and Monica smiled, grabbing his hand and holding on tight.

She was so happy she could hardly see straight. This right here, right in this moment, was everything she'd ever dreamed. She was getting ready to watch her amazing children in a school show with her happy parents - their proud grandparents - at her side. She was sitting next to the man who was her husband, her best friend, the love of her life, the most incredible father to her children and she was pregnant with their next baby.

She briefly shook her head as she looked at the closed curtain with blurry eyes, her heart feeling like it could burst.

"It doesn't get any better than this," she thought to herself, yet unknowingly whispered out loud as well.

"It sure doesn't, Mon," Chandler whispered as the spotlights hit the stage and the other lights were lowered all around them. The last of the audience quietly took their seats. Chandler grinned at his wife and placed his free hand over her tummy. She leaned into him as the curtains parted and the show began.

Through giggles, missed lines and adorable costumes the little children first told the story of Hanukkah, then moved to a story of Kwanza. Soon it was time for Erica's solo and the segue to Christmas. It was only the first verse and one chorus of "We Three Kings" but Monica's stomach tightened when her little girl, hair pulled up in a bright red bow, wearing a "shimmery" (Erica's words) red dress and shiny black shoes and tights took the stage all by herself.

Erica calmly walked confidently into the spotlight, took one look out into the audience - and completely froze. She was like a deer caught in the headlights.

Monica gasped slightly, every part of her willing her daughter to begin singing, just like she'd practiced dozens of times at home. Chandler held onto her hand a little tighter.

"You can do it, baby," she heard him whisper softly, his eyes never leaving the stage.

Erica took a couple deep breaths and looked like she was going to cry. Monica could hear her teacher off stage, whispering the opening lines to her, but otherwise the room was silent. Monica's eyes filled with tears, her heart breaking for her little girl, who had been looking so forward to this moment.

Just when it seemed that the everyone in the audience was becoming sympathetically uncomfortable, Erica squinted into the spotlight and looked through the crowd until she found who she was looking for.

She reached her arm out and in a small voice pleaded…

"Daddy?"

Chandler sat still for just a moment, mouth slightly open, eyes never leaving Erica. He squeezed Monica's hand and let go. She watched as he stood up, smoothed down his tie, made his way across the few people sitting next to them in the row and took a couple strides toward the stage.

Erica's little hand was still stretched out for him and a tear had fallen down her face, but she was smiling at him now. He grinned as he took the few steps up to the stage and took her small hand in his.

"Will you sing it with me, like at home?" she asked, hanging on to his hand for dear life.

"Sure," he whispered, ready and willing to do anything to make her feel better. He knelt down next to her and kept his eyes on hers as they began to sing to each other.

_We Three Kings of Orient are_

_Bearing gifts we traveled so far_

_Field and fountain, moor and mountain_

_Following yonder star_

Erica looked out into the crowd and started singing a little stronger. Chandler stayed by her side, singing softly enough for her to hear, and held her hand, his eyes on his daughter.

Monica's heart slammed against her chest. She smiled brightly through the tears falling down her face. She was so proud of Erica, and completely overcome by Chandler's reaction to their daughter's need for him. She knew there wasn't a question in his mind - if his daughter needed him he was going to be there, however she needed him to be there - and tonight she needed her Daddy to sing with her in front of all her classmates and their parents.

He was there, Monica thought, just like he'd always been there. Sometimes when she felt he was the only person on her side, he was by her side. He was there for his kids, he was there for his friends, he was just…there…with all this love inside of him that she actually could feel completely pour over her as they continued the song together, leaving Monica's heart in a puddle on the floor.

_Star of Wonder_

_Star of Night_

_Star with royal beauty bright_

_Westward leading still proceeding_

_Guide us to thy Perfect Light…_

Erica finished the song and gave Chandler a hug and a high-five as the audience broke into applause.

Monica took a deep breath, still clapping, as Erica left the stage. She glanced at Judy, who had a handkerchief to her eyes. They smiled at each other and a new batch of tears started for Monica as Judy leaned over and whispered...

"He's such a natural, dear."

She patted Monica's tummy. "You're one lucky baby."

Monica nodded, her tears in her throat, as Chandler grinned softly and returned to his seat. She grabbed him and hugged him close after he sat down.

"That was beautiful," she whispered. "I love you."

He smiled with tears in his eyes.

"Love you," he choked out, giving the side of her head a quick kiss.

The story of Christmas unfolded before them and before long it was little Jack's turn to take the stage - antlers, red nose and all. Unlike his sister, though, he wasn't alone and he was more than ready to lead the rousing finale of "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer."

Chandler, Monica, Jack and Judy all laughed along with the rest of the audience at Jack's antics, as he pranced around the stage and showed off his bright nose at every turn of "had a very shiny nose."

All the classes came onto the stage at the end of the song and the audience stood and sang along…

_Now all the reindeer loved him_

_As they shouted out with glee_

_Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer_

Monica and Chandler turned to each other, smiling, singing and dancing along with everyone else.

_You'll go down in history!_

_**NOTE: And the Bings sure have, haven't they? Gone down in history, I mean ;) An epilogue to go. Thanks for your reviews :)**_


	6. Epilogue

"There's my girl's ornament," Monica said, standing next to their Christmas tree in her robe, pointing to the shiny pink bulb painted white with "Baby's First Christmas."

She sighed happily, relishing this moment alone with her baby girl on Christmas morning. Chandler, Jack and Erica had gathered up all the discarded wrapping paper, ribbons and bows from the morning gift-opening spree and taken them to the kitchen to throw away or recycle. She could hear excited conversation as each of the kids drank their peppermint hot chocolate and Chandler made more coffee for the two of them.

She ran one hand over her girl's sparse dark hair and smiled as the little one's big blue eyes danced while she looked wide-eyed at the tree. She fixed her gaze briefly to where her Mom was pointing, little colored lights reflecting in her eyes, then she turned and after a moment smiled at her beaming Momma.

"Do you like those lights? Do you like those lights?" Monica grinned and giggled as she put both hands around her six-month-old daughter's torso and lifted her above her head and back down again, giving her cheeks little kisses each time, much to the baby's delight.

Then she held her close as tears filled her eyes and she enjoyed the moment of magical silence with their little miracle.

"I love you, Ava," she whispered as she kissed her daughter's head.

Ava Elizabeth Bing was born a healthy 7 pounds, 3 ounces after 8 hours of labor right on her due date, June 30, after a relatively easy pregnancy.

"Of course she was on time," Chandler had quipped only moments after she was born as he nuzzled his newborn baby's head to his cheek. "She's your daughter."

She was the image of Monica - big blue eyes shaped like her Mom's and what hair she had was dark as night, but when she smiled she was Chandler's child. Her mouth and chin were definitely his.

Monica swayed back and forth with Ava in front of the tree as Chandler, in his robe, and the twins in their PJs walked back into the living room. Jack and Erica were wearing the same matching red and green "Big Sister" and "Big Brother" footie pajamas they had worn on Christmas last year.

A year ago they were a little too big, this year they were a little too tight, but this year Ava wore a matching set that read "Little Sister…"

_Dinner was over and the Bing, Geller and Hannigan children had played hard with all the toys they'd piled up during Christmas Day at the Bing house. They'd chased around and climbed on Uncle Joey so much that he had dozed off in a chair in the corner of the living room. Ben was attached to his phone in the other corner, frantically texting friends after he and Ross had taken the Porsche for a _slow _spin._

_Phoebe had taken her two kids - 5-year-old Nadia and baby Aidan - upstairs to change into their pajamas, and Rachel had followed her with almost 8-year-old Emma and 5-year-old Luke. They had made their way back downstairs before Monica and the twins came down._

_"A Christmas Story?" Chandler asked as he looked through Christmas DVDs with Ross and Mike. Everyone hoped a movie would calm down the kids, and give the adults some time to chat uninterrupted before everyone headed home for the night._

_"Uh…" Mike said with a wince. "Nadia might be a little young for that one. How about How the Grinch Stole Christmas?"_

_"Freaks Luke out," Ross said, shaking his head._

_"Bad Santa?" Chandler said, with a grin. Ross and Mike chuckled._

_"Um," Chandler said, continuing to look, "Polar Express?"_

_"Yeah," Mike nodded._

_"That'll work," Ross agreed._

_"One trip to Christmas Town coming up," Chandler said, picking out the DVD. He was getting ready to tell the kids to go back up to their playroom, aka Uncle Joey's room, to watch the movie when he caught sight of Monica, Jack and Erica at the top of the stairs. All three had huge smiles on their faces. Chandler had to swallow hard when he saw the PJs he didn't know Monica had gotten for all three of them. With tears in his eyes, he turned to the frenzy of his friends and their kids in the living room and cleared his throat._

_"Ross?" he said loudly over the chaos, "would you wake up Joey? We've got one more, um…surprise for everyone."_

_"Takin' my life in my hands, but OK," Ross said, as he slapped Joey's knee with his hand and Joey startled awake._

_"What's going on?" Rachel said as she sat with Luke on her lap on the couch next to Phoebe, who was feeding Aidan. Mike sat next to her. The kids sat on the floor at their parents' feet and were quiet, eager to see what their aunt and uncle had planned as a surprise. Ben even looked up from his phone._

_Chandler turned back to the stairs._

_"Jack, Erica, you can come down now," he said, with a catch in his throat._

_And down the stairs flew a very excited Jack and Erica, in their "Big Brother" and "Big Sister" pajamas._

_"Oh!" Phoebe and Rachel gasped at the same time as Mike and Ross looked at Chandler, surprised smiles on their faces._

_"Dude!" Joey said, huge smile on his face as he came to stand next to Chandler. "You guys adopting again?"_

_"No," Jack said, shaking his head quickly from side to side. Erica shook her head "no," too, and started bouncing up and down._

_All eyes were on Chandler, questioning him, and he couldn't speak. He looked at Monica's brother, who looked like he was going to cry, and shook his head "no," too._

_Just then Monica came down the stairs in a pajama shirt and pajama pants, and on the shirt was printed "Bundle of Joy" across her stomach. She was just starting to show the hint of a baby bump._

_"Mommy's having this baby in her own tummy!" Jack said, excitedly. "And we get to keep it!"_

_Monica wiped her eyes as she heard the nervous laughter and saw the shocked expressions on their friends' faces, then she looked adoringly at her son._

_"You got it, Jack," Chandler said gently, kneeling down and hugging his son. "Some babies grow in their mommy's tummies and some in other tummies, but what's important is…"_

_"Where they go and how they grow!" Erica and Jack said at the same time, having heard that sentence over and over again as they grew up._

_"That's right," Monica said, coming over to hug her little family, "and I can't believe you kept the secret all the way from this morning. I know that was hard to do!"_

_Erica and Jack grinned proudly as their aunts and uncles congratulated them on their restraint and on becoming big sibs. Their cousins were excited, for a couple moments, then started to get antsy again._

_"Ready to watch the Polar Express?" Mike said, to a chorus of "yays" all around. "OK, let's go."_

_He walked over to Chandler and took the movie from him, making eye contact with Monica and smiling as he patted Chandler on the back. He led all the kids but little Aidan up to Joey's room, Ben bringing up the rear. The teen hugged both Monica and Chandler then followed his little cousins up the stairs._

_"Oh, Monica, oh!" Rachel said jumping up and putting her arms around her friend as tears started to fall all around. Phoebe wiped her eyes with Aidan's burp cloth and joined the hug, adjusting her hold on her son._

_"How far along are you?" Rachel asked, breathless._

_"Almost 12 weeks," Monica beamed through her tears._

_"How long have you known?!" Rachel said._

_"Only a couple of weeks," Monica said, shaking her head. "I found out when I went to Dr. Long's office!"_

_"You're kidding!" Rachel said with a little laugh._

_"How do you feel?" Phoebe asked, patting Monica's stomach._

_"Wonderful," she said, glancing over at Chandler, who was flanked by Joey and Ross, all three faces red from smiling and trying not to cry._

_She looked back at her girlfriends._

_"Absolutely wonderful," she said, her eyes dancing._

_Joey clapped his hand on Chandler's shoulder._

_"Wow, man, just…wow," he said, grinning broadly. "I can't believe it."_

_"I know," Chandler said, not able to keep the smile off his face. "I know it."_

_Ross clapped his other shoulder and pulled him into a hug as Joey stepped back a moment._

_"I could not be happier for you, brother," he whispered, his voice thick. "Nobody deserves it more."_

_Chandler hugged him back and looked over at his wife, who was answering a million questions with a bright smile on her face._

_"I agree," he said, with tears in his eyes as he pulled away from Ross then nodded toward his wife. "Nobody deserves it more…"_

_Ross looked at Monica and smiled as the six friends pulled each other into a hug to congratulate the Bings._

"Ava, Ava," Erica said in a sing-song voice, patting her sister on the back as Monica wrapped an arm around her 7 year old.

Ava caught sight of her big sister and reached out to "pat" her on the face. Erica giggled. Chandler grinned. He loved seeing his girls together.

"Dad, can you finish putting my track together?"

"Sure, son," Chandler said, placing the coffee mugs on coasters on an end table and kneeling next to Jack, who was randomly putting pieces together.

"Wait," he said, taking the next part of the track Jack was trying to slam together out of his hands. "I'm sure the Jolly Old Elf left directions somewhere."

Jack hopped up to look in the Hot Wheels box and pulled out the directions. He knelt next to Chandler as they hovered over them. Monica smiled at the look of concentration on her boys' faces.

She, Erica and Ava made their way over to the couch and she sat down, Ava sitting on her lap facing out as Erica knelt before her.

Monica couldn't stop smiling. She held Ava snuggled close to her as Erica started to play peak-a-boo with her baby sister, sending Ava into little fits of giggles every time. Her gaze moved to Jack, who was bouncing on the balls of his feet now, just like his father, anxious for Chandler to finish setting up his new Hot Wheels race track.

"There you go," Chandler said, snapping the last piece into place. "You gotta keep the cars up and away from Ava, OK? She can't play with them."

"OK, Dad," Jack said, already setting up the duel racers at the starting gate.

Chandler tussled his son's hair, grabbed the coffee mugs and walked over to sit next to Monica and Ava on the couch. Ava was still giggling.

"Mom, she is so funny!" Erica said with a big smile, hiding her face once again. Then… "Boo!"

The sweetest little cascade of new giggles came out of Ava, making Chandler and Monica both chuckle. He put down the drinks on the coffee table a safe distance from the kids and ran his hand over Ava's little leg. She briefly turned her smiling face to his before focusing on her sister again.

Monica turned to look at her husband, smile still firmly in place, with tears in her eyes.

"Merry Christmas," she whispered.

"Happy Hanukkah," he said, with his little grin.

Ava reached her arms out to Erica, who smiled brightly, lifting her sister off her mother's lap. She sat on the floor with Ava in her lap and gave the six-month-old a gentle hug.

Monica took a deep breath, laying back against Chandler on the couch. He put his hand over her shoulder and she laced her fingers with his. She took a good look around at her family before she tilted her head to look up into his eyes.

"Thank you," she whispered softly, overwhelmed by the happiness in her heart, overwhelmed with her love for him. "Thank you for everything."

"Ah…" he said, his cheeks turning a little pink and his heart suddenly pounding.

He pulled her closer to him and she ducked her head against his chest. He rested his chin on the top of her head and closed his eyes.

"Oh, baby…" he whispered, his voice low and soft, as he opened his eyes and looked heavenward for just a moment.

Then he grinned and kissed the top of her hair as his gaze fell on their children.

"You're welcome."

THE END.

_**NOTE: Just dawned on me that I had a couple elements of "It's a Wonderful Life" in this fic. Oh well, 'tis the season, right? Hope you enjoyed these little mushy Mondler moments, with nary a hint of angst from me. That's a Christmas miracle in and of itself! ;) **_

_**Oh, and in case anyone is curious about how these other FRIENDS kids came to be, well, they are in my one-shot "Batman vs. Spider-Man." And I'm gonna say Monica's appointment was the week after "Iced Cold Cocoa." ;) I suppose I should keep my little post-series universe, such as it is, somewhat intact.**_

_**Thank you all for your reviews, and as my friend Meg has said, all of us writers certainly love the feedback you give us. It is so sweet and appreciated, you have no idea :) We love this fictional couple and this fandom - and you all hold special place in our hearts.**_

_**Have a safe and joyous holiday season!**_


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